Thursday, January 23, 2014

Recently I read your article in the Los Angeles Times about this seasons Super Bowl match up. Now, as an avid fan of the Seahawks I was interested on what you would have to say about their upcoming bout against the Denver Bronco's, a team that has come out on top in two of their Super Bowl appearances. But as I read your article I could hardly contain the vomit that filled my mouth. Rarely are there such biased pieces of reporting that so blatantly screw up when it comes to fact checking.

I personally enjoyed your attempts to slam the Seahawks for talking trash when your whole article does nothing but put them down. Like, really, Bill? Can I call you Bill? K, thanks. Yes, the Seahawks do talk trash. But then again, the Broncos probably do as well. In fact, sometimes the only way to get pumped up on the sidelines so you can have a 15-3 season is to smack talk the other team. Where is the problem there? Yes, the Broncos have a large fan base, but so do the Seahawks.

And then there's the whole "they whined about the officiating thing when they lost the Super Bowl" thing. The NFL publicly apologized to the Seahawks for the bad calls during their one Super Bowl appearance and it is the ONLY Super Bowl in history to ever be decided by the officials. Had the game been called correctly we would have seen an entirely different Super Bowl back in 2006 with a much closer result that could have tipped either way. But Super Bowl XL is in our past. Super Bowl XLVIII is in our future, and statistics favor the Seahawks as the winners.

"It's Manning versus Sherman" Yeah, Peyton Manning (isn't he getting old?) is all over television. He likes to be on tv, we get it. He's a great quarterback. But in the past year he has dropped more passes than Russell Wilson did in the past TWO. Out of Manning's 659 attempts (the most in the NFL) 43 were dropped, averaging about 15 passes per drop. Wilson averages about 29 passes per drop and ended with 14 drops on around 400 passes. If you add that to last years stats, which were 24 dropped passes, you'd still have less dropped passes than Manning with 100 more attempts. Sherman, the Seahawks cornerback who has declared himself the best (he just may be right), will be attempting to intercept or block Manning's passes (assuming they don't get dropped anyways) and with a record like Sherman's and moves like the ones he displayed during the playoff game against the 49ers, you can be damn sure Manning is going to have a helluva time getting anything past the Seahawks defense. One can assume that Sherman will be pitted against Demaryius Thomas, the receiver that Manning has been using as a crutch all season long. Now, Thomas is a big man and in the past season has been able to dominate the corners placed against him just by sheer size. Richard Sherman, however, is also a big man and as stated by bleacher report "is seldom tested by opposing quarterbacks". If the opposing cornerback had only allowed just under two catches a game with an average of 13 yards a catch and 8 pick offs during the regular season I wouldn't mess with him either. So yeah, it is Manning versus Sherman, I get what you're saying, but why is that a bad thing? How can you be the best unless you prove it against the best?

And yes, Manning is the provincial "what a good guy" character, and Sherman gave an interview after the

game that started with yelling and shouting and stuff...but let's start by saying his team had just made it to the Super Bowl and you shoved a microphone in his face. But it wasn't just any player that you shoved a microphone in front of, it was the man who had just swatted away a pass and caused an interception that won the Seahawks a ticket to the Super Bowl. I would yell like that, too. And here's the thing. you mention that Sherman flashed 49ers player Micheal Crabtree a choke sign and then was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct. However, Sherman's "choke sign" came after he attempted to shake Crabtree's hand and Crabtree shoved Sherman in the face. Funny how you left that part out, Bill. You could say I'm making that up, but then I would tell you to look to the right. Yes, Sherman apologized for his post game interview, stating that he could have "obviously....worded things better...and had a better reaction and done things differently" but its all in the past now and we can just accept it and move on. Even Sherman says that the interview was loud BECAUSE it was in the moment.

"Knowshon Moreno vs. Marshawn Lynch". You go on to talk about how sentimental and loveable

Beast Mode #2 vs The Saints 31 yds Seahawks win

Knowshon is and how he cries during the national anthem and yada yada yada. That's nice. Sentimentality doesn't win football games. Talent wins football games. Hard work and dedication win football games. Furthermore, in this match up why does it matter if Lynch didn't appear in front of the media? I wouldn't either! How well I talk to journalists does not relate to how well I play football. AT ALL. Now as running backs go, Knowshon is pretty good. This season he has 241 attempts with 1, 038 rushing yards (longest run 31 yards) and 10 touchdowns compared to Marshawn's 301 attempts, 1, 257 yards (longest run 43 yards) and 12 touchdowns. But you didn't want to comment on how well Marshawn plays, you wanted to comment on how he is called "Beast Mode". Well sir, when you turn a three yard run into a 67 yard touchdown ramble and cause an actual earthquake, henceforth known as the "Beast Quake" you get whatever nickname you want. The thing is, Marshawn enters Beast Mode on the field and ensures Seahawk victory. He is a key member of the Seahawks defense. Ask Russell Wilson. Knowshon Moreno is good. He just wishes he was Marshawn Lynch good.

And then you go and talk about Orange Crush versus Skittles. Let me stop for a minute here and tell you that Skittles aren't a team thing. They are a Marshawn Lynch thing, and if you knew ANYTHING at all, Bill. It would be that Lynch eats Skittles when he gets nervous or over excited because the sugar in the coating helps calm his stomach down. "Coach keeps them in the med kit next to the advil" he once joked. Orange Crush is the name fans have given anything the Broncos do...EVER. Seahawks fans, however, aren't only loved by our team, we are our teams 12th man and we put the team on our back. We support the Legion of Boom in whatever they set out to do, including but not limited to winning the Super Bowl.

The only thing that matters in this game isn't who is the good guy and who is the bad guy, because really there is no good guy/bad guy dichotomy in football, it is the fact that both teams are 15-3 and this could be one of the most exciting Super Bowls yet. So see you at the Super Bowl, Bill.

The Legion of Boom will be waiting.

Alexis Olmstead is an avid Seahawks fan and despises biased articles with faulty fact checking. She also wants you to enjoy this video entitled "What the Hawk Say". Go ahead, enjoy it.